Hacking Rominator for NDS

[Typhoe]

Can anyone confirm the Linux version working under Ubuntu? If so how?

Hi,

so far, not really.

I tried running the latest (Gutsy).

First you need to install the libstdc++5 library (sudo apt-get install libstdc++5) because it's a requirement to run rominator.
Then Rominator launches, but there are still some problems (I have to send a detailed report to Hankchill).

To be able to use at least the basic features of Rominator, here is what you need to know:
+Disable the the detail view (little window) befor selecting a rom. Otherwise, it makes Rominator crash.
+You'll certainly have to scan your rom folder (refresh button) a few times because, rominator often (nearly every times in fact) crashes when doing a rom scanning in linux. But each times, it scans a few more roms...

At least, you'll be able to rename roms, trim them, and copy to flash.

The same applies to the 64bit version of ubuntu although there are libraries not found.

Hankchill, sorry, I really must send you a report, but I didn't found time to make it proper (meaning detailed enough).
So far, I can at least use Rominator to list/copy/trim (thus, so my donation

).

Thank you for your good work, and I hope you won't discard the linux version!

Typhoe

 

[Blu`]

All this time and still no .zip support? The project looks to have come along in leaps and bounds but for the userbase to go anywhere the project MUST have .zip support. There just isn't a way around it, without .zip support the entire application is useless to most of us

 

[jalaneme]

well i see no point in these type of programs, windows explorer does a far much simpler job imo, as for this program, i decided to give it a try and i don't like a few things about it.

first of all i have no time to be adding 50 or so games to this program just because it doesn't support sub folders, forget that, when i add a game to the list it has no boxart even for very old games like american skater land no info on your "database"

the picture you show here on the front of gba temp shows all the icon, boxart and so on, when i drag and drop a rom into this program, none of that shows up just a blank DS file and that's it (yes i have click the option to show game icons, makes no difference), your renaming feature is useless to me, i don't like having the release groups name in it, i just like to have the name of the game and the region of where the game originated from, that's it, nothing extra, whys is there no option for this?

your program keeps asking for me to locate a file for my flashcart, the problem is the R4DS doesn't have a client or any software to put the roms onto the flash cart, it's all drag and drop, i have no idea why this feature is here, unless it's for slot 2 flash carts or something?

overall i don't really like this software, it's awkward and i don't see it begin practical at all, but i will give it a chance this day only, if i see a improvement i may keep it, also the file size for this program is too big, 11MB for what?

oh and i don't see how you can drag and drop your roms into the R4DS when i drag from the list on the program into a location on my hard drive i can't, so what really is the purpose of this program if i can't do anything with it?

 

[PieOPah]

Dunno how you aren' finding this app usefull... Seems you are stugling with the how rather than the why!

You CAN rename you roms. One of the options will name it however you want based on variables. I only have the name and rominator auto renames when I drag it to the app. The flash card is the card that all your roms sit on - you know, that tiny card in the r4ds - when you plug that into the usb adapter, that is what the app is loking for!

Give the app a chance and learn how to use it, then you will know exactly why..... The new features make it almost indispensable!!!!

 

[hankchill]

Using 5.0.1

1. Loading the thumbnails into memory turns the instantaneous launch of Rominator into a 5 second wait. Possibly add an option to turn this off?

2. If any of the flashcarts on the list aren't connected when Rominator is launched, you get a "No disk in drive" error, rendering it unusable until the device is connected.

1. Let me guess: You have over 1000 games in your library, correct? Of course it'll be a 5 second wait, but at least it beats the crap out of having it lag to death when scrolling, resizing, etc.

2. This is Windows that wants the disk in the drive, and so far I haven't found anything to do about it. If you unplug your flash reader then it'll stop asking you because the location won't exist. All Rominator is doing is checking to see if the drive exists, and Windows is a bitch because it keeps asking you to insert your card. I'm still trying to find a way around this...

Can anyone confirm the Linux version working under Ubuntu? If so how?

The Linux version is fairly unstable, and there's not really much I can do about it since all Linux builds are different. If it does not work for you, use the Windows version under WiNE.

loaded up newest version 5.0.1

however when checking for new version again - it keeps download same version

also what is the ._Rominator.exe program for - could not delete it at all when I downloaded version 4 had to start windows in command prompt mode and delete it thatway?

Whoops, forgot to change something! I'll do another bugfix release tonight and fix that issue. My bad.

The ._Rominator.exe is just a temporary file created my Mac OS X... I hate it when it does that, and Stuffit is crap for compressing the folder and keeping the ._ files. I forgot to get rid of them this time

QUOTEAll this time and still no .zip support? The project looks to have come along in leaps and bounds but for the userbase to go anywhere the project MUST have .zip support. There just isn't a way around it, without .zip support the entire application is useless to most of us

Shall I knock on your head a little bit more? If you want Zip support, you can pay for the plugin. It's already been mentioned 100 times! The Cross Platform Zip extension for use in Rominator will run me back $99 - So stop complaining!

QUOTE

well i see no point in these type of programs, windows explorer does a far much simpler job imo, as for this program, i decided to give it a try and i don't like a few things about it.

first of all i have no time to be adding 50 or so games to this program just because it doesn't support sub folders, forget that, when i add a game to the list it has no boxart even for very old games like american skater land no info on your "database"

the picture you show here on the front of gba temp shows all the icon, boxart and so on, when i drag and drop a rom into this program, none of that shows up just a blank DS file and that's it (yes i have click the option to show game icons, makes no difference), your renaming feature is useless to me, i don't like having the release groups name in it, i just like to have the name of the game and the region of where the game originated from, that's it, nothing extra, whys is there no option for this?

your program keeps asking for me to locate a file for my flashcart, the problem is the R4DS doesn't have a client or any software to put the roms onto the flash cart, it's all drag and drop, i have no idea why this feature is here, unless it's for slot 2 flash carts or something?

overall i don't really like this software, it's awkward and i don't see it begin practical at all, but i will give it a chance this day only, if i see a improvement i may keep it, also the file size for this program is too big, 11MB for what?

oh and i don't see how you can drag and drop your roms into the R4DS when i drag from the list on the program into a location on my hard drive i can't, so what really is the purpose of this program if i can't do anything with it?

Ah Jalaneme... It seems that every time I see you respond in a thread it's always got to be something negative... Well, let's hope I can shed some light on you.

First of all, I can tell you RIGHT off the bat that you did not download the DS database. Right when you start the program, you'll need to Check for Updates, download the DS Database, and then you're good to go -- It tells you what version of the database you have based on the number of games that are in it (The latest is 1535 I believe). Box Art exists for EVERY game, again, it'll only download if the game exists in the database -- Which you didn't download.

"Locate a file for your flashcart"? I have no clue what you're talking about

A lot of people wonder why the file is so big. To put it short, all you need to do is put it on whatever computer you want, and run it. No installs of any extra frameworks, no back ends to install.. It's all in there! Imagine having to put the .NET framework embedded in each of your applications.. they would be 60+ MB, but no, those can be small because you need to install extra software to run it. Rominator is download and play. Done.

If you don't like the software and are too cynical about it, then don't use it. If you can't understand how to follow basic instructions either, then I cannot help you. It's not going to be for everyone, and if you can't help to make it better, then don't help at all. Easy as that.

 

[Blu`]

Using 5.0.1

Shall I knock on your head a little bit more? If you want Zip support, you can pay for the plugin. It's already been mentioned 100 times! The Cross Platform Zip extension for use in Rominator will run me back $99 - So stop complaining!

No thats fine. The amount of people telling you that the application is as useless as tits on a bull would indicate to me that the $99 would be a good investment with the amount of people that would pick the application up. I'm sure you'd get your money back in the blink of an eye, heck someone even offered to cover half the cost for you off the bat!

Listen to the end users, or the work suffers.

 

[raz--]

Using 5.0.1

Shall I knock on your head a little bit more? If you want Zip support, you can pay for the plugin. It's already been mentioned 100 times! The Cross Platform Zip extension for use in Rominator will run me back $99 - So stop complaining!

No thats fine. The amount of people telling you that the application is as useless as tits on a bull would indicate to me that the $99 would be a good investment with the amount of people that would pick the application up. I'm sure you'd get your money back in the blink of an eye, heck someone even offered to cover half the cost for you off the bat!

Listen to the end users, or the work suffers.

+1

 

[furbyhaterex]

How about a 7zip plugin? It's free, opens source and compresses better than zip on most roms. You could just require users to have 7zip installed if they want to use it.

If not, how about releasing a plugin spec so people could contribute their own plugins in *.dll format (or the equivalent for linux/mac)?

Just asking, not demanding...

Many thanks for your app anyway (even though I only use it for renaming my roms) !

 

[jalaneme]

Dunno how you aren' finding this app usefull... Seems you are stugling with the how rather than the why!

You CAN rename you roms. One of the options will name it however you want based on variables. I only have the name and rominator auto renames when I drag it to the app. The flash card is the card that all your roms sit on - you know, that tiny card in the r4ds - when you plug that into the usb adapter, that is what the app is loking for!

Give the app a chance and learn how to use it, then you will know exactly why..... The new features make it almost indispensable!!!!


the only thing i saw that could rename the roms is in the settings and there was only pre set renaming options which i did not like, it has the ds rom release name and all those ramdom numbers and letters e.t.c, makes the roms look messy and the file name way too long, i cannot simply click on a DS rom file in the list or right click on it to rename it, that would have been much easier for the end user, do you think?

ah that would explain it then, i was wondering what that thing was for it felt kinda of stupid at the time, why would it be asking me to find a file that don't exist?

Ah Jalaneme... It seems that every time I see you respond in a thread it's always got to be something negative... Well, let's hope I can shed some light on you.

First of all, I can tell you RIGHT off the bat that you did not download the DS database. Right when you start the program, you'll need to Check for Updates, download the DS Database, and then you're good to go -- It tells you what version of the database you have based on the number of games that are in it (The latest is 1535 I believe). Box Art exists for EVERY game, again, it'll only download if the game exists in the database -- Which you didn't download.

"Locate a file for your flashcart"? I have no clue what you're talking about

A lot of people wonder why the file is so big. To put it short, all you need to do is put it on whatever computer you want, and run it. No installs of any extra frameworks, no back ends to install.. It's all in there! Imagine having to put the .NET framework embedded in each of your applications.. they would be 60+ MB, but no, those can be small because you need to install extra software to run it. Rominator is download and play. Done.

If you don't like the software and are too cynical about it, then don't use it. If you can't understand how to follow basic instructions either, then I cannot help you. It's not going to be for everyone, and if you can't help to make it better, then don't help at all. Easy as that.

well when i doubled clicked on the exe file and it went through the settings i did click on the automatically check for database updates near the end and pressed finish but it seems that did nothing, i don't know any way else to download the database as i didn't see any option in the drop down menu to do so, also the icons for the DS games still do not show even when the settings menu the option to view the icons is selected yes i also checked for updates in the drop down menu and it downloaded them, i opened up the exe and i still get the same results, no boxart, no game icon for my games, nothing.

i already have net framework installed so that wouldn't have been a problem, the above poster did explain what i meant by the file location thing.

overall my view hasn't changed, the program simply doesn't let you edit, delete or view your roms quickly in the main list without having to go through the settings, going through windows explorer is much faster, it's not the fact that i don't like it, i was curious about it and was wondering what the locomotion was all about that's why i tried it, it a shame that i was not impressed while first using it.

and the fact that i would have to spend nearly half a afternoon manually dragging and dropping my roms because they are in "subfolders" doesn't make this program user friendly at all, most of all it makes it frustrating to use and not something you can open straight away and drag your roms to your flashcart in a few seconds without having to go through all those settings.

 

[Logan]

Jalaneme your first post, the tone of it, makes me feel ashamed to be from the same country. I've no idea how much time and effort Hank puts into this application but the fact that he churns out updates to the program and the database at an almost weekly rate tells me he works damned hard on it. He did not deserve the way in which you went about your criticism which was closer to "your application is a pile of shit" then constructive criticism.

However I think after some dissecting of the unnecessary crap from your post, you make a few valid points I'm sure Hank will address.

I feel I do have to agree with the posters above regarding ZIP support. It still remains one of the most missed features for me personally. Hell I'd even take 7z but to please the masses its gotta be ZIP support.

 

[jalaneme]

ha whatever, i speak what i want to say, you have no right to basically tell me to shut up, if he wants feedback he shall have feedback, the point still remains, i still can't use any of the features he has mentioned they don't work and it is not simple to use, it's a fact.

 

[Logan]

Using 5.0.1

1. Loading the thumbnails into memory turns the instantaneous launch of Rominator into a 5 second wait. Possibly add an option to turn this off?

2. If any of the flashcarts on the list aren't connected when Rominator is launched, you get a "No disk in drive" error, rendering it unusable until the device is connected.


Using 5.0.1 here too.

I can confirm that Rominator now takes a good 5-10 seconds to become fully operational from launch.

ha whatever, i speak what i want to say, you have no right to basically tell me to shut up, if he wants feedback he shall have feedback, the point still remains, i still can't use any of the features he has mentioned they don't work and it is not simple to use, it's a fact.

I think you'll find I never told you to shut up. You, like me or anyone else on here has the freedom to say what you want, adhering to the rules of the forum. I've no beef with that.

I was merely pointing out that your sheer lack of respect and attitude bemuses me, however perfectly represents the state of our country - no respect for anyone or anything any more. But I digress.

Don't like it, say you piece, then don't use it. Simple as.

 

[hankchill]

No thats fine. The amount of people telling you that the application is as useless as tits on a bull would indicate to me that the $99 would be a good investment with the amount of people that would pick the application up. I'm sure you'd get your money back in the blink of an eye, heck someone even offered to cover half the cost for you off the bat!

Listen to the end users, or the work suffers.

Now tell me, what on earth would make you think I'd go and spend the money on something I develop for free? I already spent tons on making the program, and am not in the financial situation to spend more on it. I don't care that I would get the money back quickly or that I was offered half the cost -- I'm not taking that risk. Again, do I need to mention that I develop for free?

well when i doubled clicked on the exe file and it went through the settings i did click on the automatically check for database updates near the end and pressed finish but it seems that did nothing, i don't know any way else to download the database as i didn't see any option in the drop down menu to do so, also the icons for the DS games still do not show even when the settings menu the option to view the icons is selected yes i also checked for updates in the drop down menu and it downloaded them, i opened up the exe and i still get the same results, no boxart, no game icon for my games, nothing.

i already have net framework installed so that wouldn't have been a problem, the above poster did explain what i meant by the file location thing.

overall my view hasn't changed, the program simply doesn't let you edit, delete or view your roms quickly in the main list without having to go through the settings, going through windows explorer is much faster, it's not the fact that i don't like it, i was curious about it and was wondering what the locomotion was all about that's why i tried it, it a shame that i was not impressed while first using it.

and the fact that i would have to spend nearly half a afternoon manually dragging and dropping my roms because they are in "subfolders" doesn't make this program user friendly at all, most of all it makes it frustrating to use and not something you can open straight away and drag your roms to your flashcart in a few seconds without having to go through all those settings.

File -> Check for Updates. This will check for any database updates. To be honest, I made the initial setup process as seamless and easy as possible. It seems to be an isolated incident as nobody else has this issue.

.Net is not required to use Rominator. No frameworks are required to use it -- The framework is built into the app, hence the app size.

I understand that you would spend a long time dragging and dropping your games into it just to use it, but you need to understand that you're in the minority who keeps their games in subfolders -- I think you're only the 2nd person who does, so really it hasn't been an important feature for me to add in. Maybe when I get other bugs kicked out I might consider allowing you to drop a folder and having it scan the entire contents to find ds games

QUOTE

Jalaneme your first post, the tone of it, makes me feel ashamed to be from the same country. I've no idea how much time and effort Hank puts into this application but the fact that he churns out updates to the program and the database at an almost weekly rate tells me he works damned hard on it. He did not deserve the way in which you went about your criticism which was closer to "your application is a pile of shit" then constructive criticism.

However I think after some dissecting of the unnecessary crap from your post, you make a few valid points I'm sure Hank will address.

I feel I do have to agree with the posters above regarding ZIP support. It still remains one of the most missed features for me personally. Hell I'd even take 7z but to please the masses its gotta be ZIP support.

That seems really harsh to say Logan. We're not here to put each other down or feel ashamed of anyone. It's not the first time someone has called my work unimpressive, but that's just their opinion, and I don't control that. All I can do is find out what they see wrong with it, and try to fix it.

I know Zip is the most wanted feature -- But again, costs man

I can't budget it in right now for free software -- Yes, I do spend countless hours developing and cranking out updates every week, but I can't afford spending the money on it, especially considering I don't get back everything I've spent to make this.

If there is enough support through donations, then I will add Zip. Until then, it'll have to wait, and I'll just have to improve on every other aspect.

 

[Logan]

That seems really harsh to say Logan. We're not here to put each other down or feel ashamed of anyone. It's not the first time someone has called my work unimpressive, but that's just their opinion, and I don't control that. All I can do is find out what they see wrong with it, and try to fix it.

Fair enough. To be honest I'd gauged from reading your posts on here over the months you're the type that would see through anything irrelevant and just address the issues raised, and kudos to you for that. I'll exhibit more restraint in future!

I know Zip is the most wanted feature -- But again, costs man

I can't budget it in right now for free software -- Yes, I do spend countless hours developing and cranking out updates every week, but I can't afford spending the money on it, especially considering I don't get back everything I've spent to make this.

Yeah I fully understand the reasons.

QUOTE(hankchill @ Oct 22 2007, 02:47 PM)If there is enough support through donations, then I will add Zip. Until then, it'll have to wait, and I'll just have to improve on every other aspect.

Fair comment.

 

[aphirst]

I can't understand why people want a ZIP plugin in the first place. Well I do see why... but it seems somewhat immaterial. All operating systems can process zip files with some program or other anyway, so the added *hardship* of unzipping your ROMs to another directory to trim and transfer just doesn't bother me; and I have hundreds of the damned things

. (Yes I do own the games!)

Although, I could understand it if you had a slow pc (or didnt run linux

*shameless plug* ) and had thousands of the things. I myself probably will donate at some point, because this program is just so damned cool.

 

[jalaneme]

yes i did check for updates as stated in my previous posts, made no difference, as for the sub folders it's a shame, i like to keep all my folders organised so i doubt i will change to have all roms in one folder any time soon.

anyways keep up the good work, and maybe i may try your program again one day.

 

[shinji257]

I just wanted to respond to those that have stated that the load times have gotten longer. If you are using the option to show the game icons then disable it and see if that changes anything. I just turned it on and it added an additional second while i loaded them into memory. Otherwise the load time was fairly instant. Granted I only have 90 games in that list.

On that note this version loads up alot quicker than Rominator 4 did. Even with the game icons being displayed. Keep up the great work hankchill!

 

[hankchill]

yes i did check for updates as stated in my previous posts, made no difference, as for the sub folders it's a shame, i like to keep all my folders organised so i doubt i will change to have all roms in one folder any time soon.

anyways keep up the good work, and maybe i may try your program again one day.

I'll let you know when you can drop and folder and it'll scan it

QUOTEI just wanted to respond to those that have stated that the load times have gotten longer. If you are using the option to show the game icons then disable it and see if that changes anything. I just turned it on and it added an additional second while i loaded them into memory. Otherwise the load time was fairly instant. Granted I only have 90 games in that list.

On that note this version loads up alot quicker than Rominator 4 did. Even with the game icons being displayed. Keep up the great work hankchill!

I think the people who are saying it takes 5-10 seconds are the ones who like to be "collectors" and keep every game in the library

Sure, it'll take around 7 seconds to initialize 1500 games, as all their icons are loaded into memory. However, I may decide to make this an option, so it'll be the user's choice what they want to trade off:
• No Icon Caching: Faster Initial List Display (about 6 seconds faster, big deal), but lag in scrolling in the list, and resizing, even if only a few games in the list.
• Icon Caching: 5-10 second startup time (with approx 1500 games in list), but completely smooth scrolling and resizing.

I have around 200 games in my list, and it's instantaneous, so like I said, the initial wait only applies to MANY games.

I'm not sure if any of you remember Rominator 2.0? Heck, that one took a minute and a half to load a list full of all the games

I think I've made quite some progress

 

[Logan]

810 games in my list, 5-10 seconds to load

Please make caching an option!!

 

[knocturnal]

Is there anyway to download all of the boxart for the games in your collection with one command like the previous version of the software. I dislike having to go through each game in my list one by one and wait for the box art to re download (especially since I had them all downloaded from the previous version with the download box art command). This especially stinks since I have about 335 or more to go through and I'm on dial up.

Is there anyway to at least extract the box art from the boxart.rsd from the old version...something...anything.

Why in the world would a feature be taken out of the software.